mandala

made another mandala today.

last year's:
i reclaim wholeness. i come from a Warrior people. I go back to move forward.

this year's:
warrior-spirit prayer for awakening

may all beings be granted with the strength, determination, and wisdom to exitinguish anger and reject violence as a way.

may all suffering cease and may i seek find and fully realize the love and compassion that already live within me and allow them to inspire and permeate my every action.

may i exercise the precious gift of choice and the power to change that makes me uniquely human and is the only true path to liberation.

may i swiftly reach complete effortless freedom so that my fearless, unhindered action be of benefit to all.

may i lead the life of a Warrior.

/|\

to be translated to tagalog soon. (it's on my list.)

met another babaylan the other day.
we're coming out of the woodwork.

yes, i'm one, too.
time to come out.
and claim this.
live this.
get myself in trouble when i don't.

in my mandala,
the words are in concentric circles...
starting from the inside,
and spiraling out.

that's how it goes, right?
it starts inside and ripples out.
the work.
the practice.
the healing.

in the real.
symbolically.
metaphorically.

i've drawn this, even as a small child.
i draw it still.
it soothes me.

i get lost in the circles.
or is it that i get found?

one of the first things that Bong did when we met, is trace this symbol on the table.
you know this, right?

yes, i know this.
gulp.
double gulp.

mandala:
(thanks, google.)

The word comes from the sanskrit and means sacred circle. The circle symbolizes the womb of creation.

an idealized circular model of the cosmos, with the source of cosmic or temporal power located at the centre, and deities or beings representing lesser powers or energies radiating outward toward the periphery, the limits of the system.

an array of gods or goddesses around a central figure seen in Buddhist art. The simplest mandalas are constructed as a series of concentric circles within a square. Each successive concentric circle closer to the center of this figure represents a deeper layer of the psyche; the central figure, a center of integration.

magic diagram or sign

pictorial diagram of the world, and of a person, used in meditation and Tantric rituals

A symbolic circular design

artistic representation of the cosmos, a focus for meditation

Literally, "center" and "circumference."
1) Representation of a universe with a deity's palace at the center that is often depicted iconographically in sand paintings and thangkas.
2) The mandala offering present in many rituals.
3) The basis for the third preliminary practice, a symbolic offering of the entire universe.

Symbol of the innate harmony and perfection of Being. Diagrams to inner mystical states

Literally, circle, arch, section. A symbolic design that includes a centre and periphery, used for the purpose of contemplation.

yes, i know this.